Meeks' 31 points help 76ers rout Cavs

PHILADELPHIA - Jodie Meeks is starting again for the Philadelphia 76ers, albeit because of injury, and on Tuesday night he made the most of it.

The third-year guard poured in a career-high 31 points, as the Sixers routed the Cleveland Cavaliers 103-85.

Meeks, whose previous career high was 26, shot 11-for-16 from the field and 7-for-10 from 3-point range, enabling the Sixers (28-22) to take a half-game lead atop the Atlantic Division over the idle Boston Celtics.

"I just know I was open," Meeks said. "I was glad to be open. … My teammates kept looking for me, and I kept knocking them down."

Meeks also scored the most points by a Sixer this season. Jrue Holiday had 30 against Chicago on March 17.

Meeks, who began the night averaging 8.2 points a game, started the first 38 games of the season, then gave way to Evan Turner and came off the bench in 10 straight. He returned to the lineup Sunday against San Antonio in place of Andre Iguodala, who is bothered by tendinitis in his left knee, and remained there Tuesday, as Iguodala again sat out.

"Jodie's a professional," coach Doug Collins said. "Whether Jodie is starting or whether Jodie is coming off the bench, he plays the same way. That is why I didn't think it would be a huge adjustment for him, because he comes in and he's always ready. He's got a motor. He comes in and he's ready to go."

"Any time you're on the court, it's an opportunity to get better," Meeks said. "Whether I'm starting or coming off the bench, playing 10 minutes or 30, I try to play the same game and help the team any way possible."

Holiday added 19 points for the Sixers, who are just 8-13 since opening the season 20-9. But on Tuesday they took advantage of one of the NBA's worst defenses, shooting 48.9 percent from the field, making 10 of 19 3-pointers and eclipsing the 100-point mark for just the second time in their last eight games.

They also scored 54 points in the paint, which Cleveland coach Byron Scott called "a big concern" for his team, which fell to 17-30 with its fourth straight loss.

"It's something we talk about all the time," he said. "Our weakside defense wasn't very good, and our biggest problem was a lack of communication out there."

Meeks scored 26 points last season against Charlotte and matched that total Jan. 13 against Washington. The only other time he exceeded the 20-point mark this season came against Detroit on Jan. 6, when he scored 21.

Ten of Meeks' points, including a pair of 3-pointers, came in a 12-0 Sixers run early in the game. That staked them to a 12-5 lead, and they never trailed again.

"Any time a shooter sees the ball go in the hole, it gives him confidence," he said. "But I'm always a player with confidence. As long as I'm taking good shots, I'm not really worried about it. Coach Collins says the same thing: 'Just take good shots and don't force it, and live with the results.' "

By the end of the quarter Meeks had 12 points, and the Sixers owned a 29-21 lead. They pushed their advantage to as many as 15 in the second quarter, when Holiday notched eight points.

Meeks had 15 points by halftime, at which point the Sixers led 57-43, while Holiday added 12.

The Sixers led by as many as 20 points in the second half, and never by fewer than 11.

Besides the porous defense, Scott was bothered by his team's slow start.

"Along with that, it just seems like our guys have lost some confidence," he said. "We've been through this before. We have lost those six in a row (beginning in late February). We just need to continue to work and believe in what we're doing."

NOTES: Cavaliers guard Daniel Gibson, who missed his fourth straight game, has a torn tendon in his left foot and ankle and will likely miss the rest of the season. "I know we're going to continue to do further evaluation on him," Scott said. "We've got the best doctors in the world at the Cleveland Clinic, so they want to figure out the best way to handle this situation." … Collins is hopeful that Iguodala will be able to return for Friday's game at Washington. "We need him healthy and fresh," Collins said. "He does so many things for our team. I think we've grown over the last two years to appreciate all the little things he does. At least I have." … The Sixers improved to 18-5 against sub-.500 teams.